Welcome to Brazen Careerist!

About Me

My name is Chris Perry, MBA, and I am a Gen Y brand and marketing generator with a contagious passion for brand, product and business marketing, digital and social media, and career and personal branding.

I currently work full-time in CPG brand management at Reckitt Benckiser for the RID-X® brand, and I have contributed to the success of multiple brands across diverse industries, including Lysol® and Kodak®.

I am also an "after-hours” entrepreneur, career search and personal branding expert, social media strategist, blogger, professional speaker and brand consultant. I'm the founder of Career Rocketeer™, the Career Search & Personal Branding Network, MBA Highway™, the MBA Job Search & Career Network, Blogaristo™, the Blog Marketing Guide, and multiple other ventures.

Recognized as a thought leader, I have been featured in publications, including Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters 3.0 (Wiley, 2011), and media outlets, such as The Wall Street Journal, SmartMoney, ABCNews, CNNMoney, TheLadders, Monster.com and more.

As a professional speaker, I have presented at venues, including the University of Richmond, College of William & Mary, Rutgers University, NJIT, Virginia Commonwealth University and many other universities and organizations. As a consultant, I frequently assist professionals, entrepreneurs and businesses with marketing, branding and social media.

I am an MBA graduate of the Mason School of Business at the College of William & Mary.

Work History

• Reckitt Benckiser
• Associate Brand Manager
• June 2010 to Present

• Responsible for both base business and NPD / EPD activity on market-leading brand; budgeting; P&L responsibility; consumption tracking and analysis (Nielsen); forecasting; SKU rationalization; supply, trade marketing and sales interface; packaging development; media planning; market research coordination; cross-functional team leadership and agency and project management.

• Career Rocketeer
• Founder
• April 2009 to Present

• Career Rocketeer is the Career Search and Personal Branding Network, welcoming ambitious career entrepreneurs of all ages and professions who are driven to "launch" their careers to greater heights.

  • Develop and execute marketing strategies to build brand awareness and generate sustainable revenues
  • Manage associated network communities of 10,000+ professionals across LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and more.
  • Write content and coordinate content from hundreds of guest experts and writers
  • Solicit and manage sponsorships to fund ongoing maintenance and marketing efforts
  • Design and maintain the site branding, layout and functionality
  • Created, edited and published Launchpad, a career search strategy book series
  • Co-host Career Studios, a bi-weekly teleseminar on job search and career management

• MBA Highway
• Founder
• October 2008 to Present

• MBA Highway is your MBA Job Search and Career Network, a career blog, resource and community exclusively for MBA students and MBA professionals across all industries, functional areas and career stages.

  • Develop and execute marketing strategies to build brand awareness and generate sustainable revenues
  • Manage associated network communities of 30,000+ professionals across LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and more.
  • Write content and coordinate content from guest experts and writers
  • Solicit and manage sponsorships to fund ongoing maintenance and marketing efforts
  • Design and maintain the site branding, layout and functionality

• Chris Perry - Brand & Marketing Generator
• Personal Branding Expert
• October 2008 to Present

• • Consult, coach and support organizations, professionals and entrepreneurs on branding, marketing and social media
  • Speak professionally and teach career search, personal branding and marketing seminars to MBA program, university and corporate audiences up to 100+ members
  • Featured in such media outlets as The Wall Street Journal, SmartMoney, ABCNews, CNNMoney and more
  • Co-authored Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters 3.0 (Wiley, 2011) and have been featured in other publications
  • Write content for several blogs and websites on a variety of topics

• Reckitt Benckiser
• Asssistant Brand Manager
• July 2009 to May 2010

• Responsible for all base business activity on two brand segments (one market leader and one challenger); budgeting; P&L responsibility; consumption tracking and analysis (Nielsen); forecasting; SKU rationalization; supply, trade marketing and sales interface; packaging development; cross-functional team leadership and agency and project management.

• Eastman Kodak Company
• MBA Future Product Marketing Intern
• May 2008 to August 2008

• Served in Assistant Product Marketing Manager capacity on future product marketing team for digital picture frames.

  • Analyzed syndicated industry data sources including NPD, GAP and GFK and developed pricing and product strategy tools for upcoming product portfolios and marketing strategy planning.
  • Led a team of interns to introduce new Generation Y marketing opportunities, tactics and ideas to corporate and regional marketing managers.
  • Developed the Go-To-Market product innovation plan and launch strategy for new wireless digital picture frame with social media integration.
  • Researched consumer insights and developed the proposal for new line of socially responsible “cause” cameras and accessories.
  • Completed full in-store competitive analysis for digital picture frames at 10 different retailers, which entailed salesperson and customer interviews, price comparisons and product, stock-out and share-of-shelf audits.

• VAMAC, Inc.
• Marketing Project Coordinator
• July 2002 to August 2007

• Led B2B and B2C brand marketing initiatives, designed marketing strategy and marketing programs for new store locations, created marketing literature, print collateral and sales kits for new business development team, developed consistent communications for internal and external audiences, and conducted market research to support business.

  • Spearheaded redevelopment of customer loyalty program, including identifying consumer insights, designing promotional strategy, integrating growth structure, developing financial forecasts and ROI analyses.
  • Designed and executed local marketing strategy and campaigns for 4 new wholesale storefronts and new retail showroom.
  • Identified marketing budget cost savings, totaling $40,000 by integrating synergistic marketing activities.
  • Enrolled and participated in company’s leadership and business development program.

Education

• College of William & Mary: Mason School of Business
• M.B.A., Brand Management, Entrepreneurship
• 2007 - 2009

• College of William & Mary
• B.A., French, Marketing
• 2003 - 2007